


(but all these are) golden dreams

by ultraviolence



Category: Fate/Grand Order, Fate/Prototype: Fragments of Sky Silver, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Begging, Enemies to Lovers, Flirting, Fluff and Smut, Kissing, Lancer Arthur, M/M, Marking, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Teacher-Student Relationship, it should be called bullying Arthur is love, kiss kiss bulli each other bang bang, more like somewhat weird enemies to colossal idiocy, no braincells they die like men, the banter never stops with these lads
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-01
Updated: 2019-10-01
Packaged: 2020-11-09 05:54:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20848595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ultraviolence/pseuds/ultraviolence
Summary: Fall semester had started, there's a new TA in the block, and he'd somehow determined to make Lucius' life a little bit harder. In the meanwhile, he struck up a friendship online with a mysterious stranger, and somehow, the two things are more connected than he realised.Put it simply: annoying, troubled student Lucius/secretly concerned but emotionally constipated hot TA Lancer Arthur. AU. Might contain a bonus drabble with Saber in the future with a different scenario.





	(but all these are) golden dreams

**Author's Note:**

> I have...no excuse for this one other than I am surrounded by, erm, extremely _supportive_ people, and I have zero self-control, which is never a good combination in any given situation. So I come bearing all of you this gift, welcome to the hell that is my head, you can never leave now.
> 
> I'm planning to write a bonus drabble with the original drafted idea which involved everyone's fave classic Lucius/Saber Arthur dynamics, though I'm not sure if I'd ever get around to it, but I probably will, and Valhalla will witness me.
> 
> Happy spooky season and please enjoy!

The hushed silence that gripped the class when the new TA walked into the room would always be the first thing that he remembered, whenever he thought back to that one particular autumn morning.

He really wasn’t paying much attention beforehand. The fall semester had officially began, heralding the beginning of his junior year, and he wasn’t very keen about going back to classes and doing all the motions, especially not a class on a basic subject he had to retake because he considered it to be boring and a waste of time, and it doesn’t help that it was still too early to function. He’d considered skipping because the first meeting would just be introductions anyway, but he managed to force himself to attend after one and a half cups of coffee.

Of course, there are already whispers about a new face, and he supposed the few overachievers who came early had caught at least a glimpse of the newcomer, but most of them, including him, did not, and the curiosity emitted by his peers (some familiar faces, but none he were particularly fond of) were almost palpable.

For his part, Lucius doesn’t really care, since he wasn’t really there by choice anyway, and he doesn’t really listen to what the lecturer has to say, until he mentioned that he’s going to introduce his new assistant, and casually opened the door, motioning for said assistant to come in.

Then, a hushed silence gripped the room, and that managed to caught his attention—he stopped tapping his pen on the side of his chair absent-mindedly—as he and the rest of the class regarded their new TA, who returned their obvious curiosity with an impenetrable calm, though he could have been silently nervous (as anyone would), but it’s hard to read his expression.

Lucius had assumed that it’s going to be either an overwhelmingly chirpy, annoying, aspiring academic-to-be, or one of those endlessly nervous nerdy types that would inevitably be pushed around by the class (him included), but he was proven wrong the moment the new assistant walked into class. For one, he was a little younger than Lucius had expected, perhaps a year or two his senior, but it’s a little hard to guess his age. And, age aside, the nearly voracious attention the class gave the tall, blond man was warranted, since he doesn’t look nowhere near the stereotypical nerdy academic, but closer to the mythical race of people that Lucius caught a glimpse of every now and then on the covers of fashion magazines and his mother’s soirees and parties, and the man emitted a kind of cool, sophisticated charisma that was, undoubtedly, magnetic.

Their lecturer, a professor by the name of Romani Archaman—forgotten and sidelined momentarily—introduced his assistant as Arthur Pendragon, and proceeded to mention a little about his academic background, presumably taken from his resume, which Lucius listened to with some interest, and then pattered on about the areas in which his assistant will help cover. Another hush befell the room again when he gave Arthur a chance to speak, but Lucius found his attention trailing elsewhere when they began to talk about the course’s syllabus, materials and whatnot.

It was _still_ boring, he thought, and the assistant didn’t speak to them that much anyway, not yet perhaps, and he was eventually relegated to the teacher’s desk in the corner to supervise them while the lecturer started getting into the materials for the first week. He was glad when the class finally ended, but lingered a little in packing his things (there’s not much of it since he doesn’t even want to be in class in the first place), since he did felt somewhat curious about the TA.

Evidently, he’s not the only one, since some of the others lingered on, too, and he watched as they approached the new assistant, either by themselves or in small groups of twos or threes, asking suffocatingly polite questions about the course, grades, office hours and the like. It was pretty amusing, he supposed, and perhaps Arthur felt the same, but he was unflinchingly civil, though it was clear that he kept them at a certain distance, from the cool glances that he gave them, and the short, succinct answers.

Lucius didn’t need to work up a courage to approach him—he wasn’t the type to feel intimidated, and besides, he’d met a lot of supposedly intimidating individuals thanks to his parents and their ridiculous socialising—and he simply walked up to Arthur, after he observed enough.

“So how should I address you?” He started, casually, on purpose, watching as Arthur shifted his gaze from the screen of his laptop to him, only a little bit startled, but not for long. “Since, you know, you’re a bit younger than the usual, stuffy grad student types.”

“I’m not quite sure what you mean by that,” the other man said, carefully, after a short pause, folding his hands together on the desk. “I completed my undergraduate degree a year faster, and I started grad school two years after that. I’m not really sure what you’re trying to say here,” Arthur arched an eyebrow in question, giving him the same cool glance that he gave the other students in the class.

“I was just wondering, since you perhaps think that it would be a tad impolite for us to address you by your first name,” Lucius shrugged. It was, of course, just something that he made up, since he wanted to catch Arthur’s attention. Arthur gave him something that feels like silent disapproval, but now that he got his attention, Lucius masterfully shifted the topic. “I did want to ask about what to prepare for next week.”

“You didn’t pay attention at all, did you?” The silence that existed in the space between his words and Arthur’s response were only a little bit suffocating, and although Arthur dropped the words quietly, the look in his eyes told Lucius that he _did_ notice.

“No, it just slipped my mind, that’s all,” he forged forward, with another shrug.

“Oh, then perhaps I was imagining things when I saw you playing with your phone and bothering the student in front of you the entire time,” a mild remark, but the sarcasm was unmistakable, accompanied by the ghost of an amused smile. “But, to answer your question, you can read it yourself in the drive. The link is there on the whiteboard. If you have any pressing questions, my email address is in the drive too,” Arthur added, likely an afterthought, sounding a little bored, turning his gaze back to his laptop. “On second thought, I’m going to give you some additional reading, since this isn’t your first time taking this course, and it seems like you could use some extra incentive,” he suddenly said, when Lucius was just about to respond.

This was…somewhat baffling and certainly new. None of his lecturers, professors, or TAs had bothered to research their students beforehand, much less memorise certain details such as the fact that some of them had failed at certain classes before, especially if it’s a medium-sized class of around 20 people like this one. He certainly doesn’t feel at all happy at this revelation, especially given the fact that Arthur had just so casually assigned him additional text to suffer through. 

“Did you read our files before coming into class, or what?” He blurted out, only feeling a little bit aggravated. “You _are_ a stuffy grad student type after all.”

“Just some,” Arthur says, but when their gaze meet again, Lucius was certain that he was lying. “It is generally a good idea to find out what a class is like before you start teaching, don’t you think? I don’t think it’s a generally good idea, however, to call your lecturer’s assistant a nerd on the first week of class.”

“That’s not what I’m saying, but, if the shoe fits, you know,” he smirked, only a little, feeling more and more amused by this exchange. It was perhaps a good thing that they were pretty much the only two remaining people in the room. 

“Well, in any case, I look forward to see you come prepared next week,” Arthur says, somewhat curtly, his tone final. The look that he gave him made Lucius felt certain that he expected him to do just the opposite. “I’ll make sure to put up a special folder for your additional reading. Now, I’m sure you have somewhere else to be, and I have to start preparing for the next class. I’ll see you next week.”

He _did_ have someplace else to be, and, although he really felt like bothering Arthur further, he doesn’t really think that it’s a good idea, and he certainly felt that somehow, for some reason, the new TA had it out for him.

It doesn’t bother him all that much, as a matter of fact, he thinks that it might make the boring Ethics class more interesting, and he quickly forgot about it after he left the room, but not after he made it known to the world through his Twitter account that the unsettlingly attractive new TA seems to be quite hellbent on making his academic life just a little bit harder.

* * *

Days passed somewhat quickly after that, some boring, a few were interesting, though mostly he doesn’t bother coming to classes if there isn’t any pressing matter or anything particularly interesting. Everything is, by all means, business as usual, but for one thing: the impulsive, spur-of-the-moment thing that he tweeted about Arthur seemed to have caught someone else’s attention—a fellow student, he assumed—and they hit it off.

Lucius knows his way around campus and he absolutely knows all the right people (at least he liked to think that he does), so it bothered him a little that he had not the vaguest idea of the identity of his new, mysterious online friend, but he rationalised it with the thought that the campus is a big place and it might have been somebody he’d never crossed paths with before.

Either way, their interactions were quite interesting, and it certainly help stave off the creeping ennui of the daily grind.

He was thinking of what he’s going to say next to his new online friend (and the party his cousin, Nero, is throwing that night) when he walked into the nearest coffee shop—“near” by proximity to his faculty—that Friday afternoon, after a club meeting, and spotted a familiar face in the corner. It shouldn’t be _that_ surprising, considering that he’d stumbled into various other TAs and even lecturers before there, but it was his first time seeing him outside of class, and it felt, somehow, a tad jarring. 

He took his time ordering his coffee, since it doesn’t look like Arthur had noticed him—he looked busy with a pile of papers and his laptop—and, for a moment, Lucius considered maybe minding his own business anyway and not bother him, since they did not have a warm relationship after that initial exchange a couple of weeks back—actually he felt like the other man had been watching him like a hawk in class and made him suffer a bit whenever he had the reasonable chance to, and he had no idea of the reason for this particular brand of animosity other than he’d probably rubbed Arthur off the wrong way somehow—but his curiosity (and the petty desire to annoy someone who’d dared to make him suffer) wins in the end.

“Fancy seeing you here, prof,” he casually remarked, coffee in hand, after he strolled up to him, taking advantage of Arthur’s apparent state of being distracted by work to made his way to him unnoticed. “I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before. I thought you didn’t hang around much.”

“No, I did spent some time here every now and then,” Arthur said, after a fair amount of startled silence, putting down his pen with a tiny scowl. “Or did you still hold that elementary school belief that your teachers and tutors disappeared into the void after class ended?”

“Well, _I_ didn’t say that,” Lucius shrugged lightly, trying to peer at the paper Arthur was busy making a short work of with his pen. “Are you seriously busy grading last week’s essays? It’s practically the weekend already,” he couldn’t help but tease him a little, especially now that he can see that underneath the calm exterior, Arthur did look a bit stressed. “You should go party or something. See a movie if that’s not your thing. I’m pretty sure some people would jump at the chance of going out with you.”

“I’m not sure what you’re implying,” Arthur told him, dryly, picking his pen back up. “I think you probably forgot that some of us actually had work to do,” he told him, his tone impersonal, and, from the way that he started to swiftly mark things again on the paper, it was clear that he’s already tuning Lucius out. “If you don’t really have anything useful to say to me, then I’d like to excuse myself from this conversation.”

It was the same tone that he used in class whenever they reached the end of a particular session, and the same one that Arthur gave him a couple of weeks back when he first spoke to him after class, and Lucius knows that it means that was the end of it. There was no pressing the issue, and anyway he doesn’t expect their conversation to go in a friendly direction. 

“Suit yourself,” Lucius simply said. “I’ll see you around, prof.”

He tried to turn his mind to the upcoming party that night, but somehow, he couldn’t help but feel more than slightly baffled. It’s not the way Arthur treated him, for sure—most of the lecturers and professors treated him with a sort of suffocating, distant, grudging respect (if not outright dislike, sometimes) considering the amount of donations his parents made to the university annually, and this sort of animosity he was indifferent to, if not outright motivated him to be what they perceive as trouble—but it’s something deeper, like he’s a puzzle waiting to be solved.

And, anyway, all the quiet hostility aside, Lucius had to admit that it was hard not to be fascinated and even attracted to the enigmatic new TA.

* * *

The month passed by in what seems like a blur of days and events, though, in retrospect, somehow the days felt like it lasted for a lifetime, paradoxically. Everything is still business as usual, he took the liberty of skipping some classes every now and then when he felt like it, although he never did skip Arthur’s class. He simply took Arthur’s cold animosity towards him as a challenge, and he liked meeting challenges head-on. On the other hand, his friendship with the mysterious online friend is going very well, though the other party had never shown much interest in taking it beyond that. Lucius doesn’t particularly care about that, although he did speculate absently about him every now and then, but the curiosity is, more often than not, being pushed aside by other more, pressing concerns.

Right now his pressing concern is about how not to get on Arthur’s bad side even more, since it was his turn for a private tutoring session in his office, and he’s already running fifteen minutes late. 

He’s not sure why he cares, since if he failed the class he could probably retake it again anyway if he wants to, and besides, he’s not the one who took the relationship in an odd, antagonistic direction, but he showed up, still, even if he’d considered skipping the appointment.

The door was left open just enough to let him know that an intrusion is currently welcomed if not expected, and Lucius didn’t bother knocking since he assumed Arthur knows he’s probably going to arrive at some point. He just pushed it open and stepped into the office.

He expected personal touches, perhaps a little clutter here and there, like the offices of the other TAs that he’d been in, but the space was…empty. Or, more accurately, it was impersonal, almost clinical even, and all the papers and books it contained are stacked up neatly, and it smelled clean, refined, a lot like the man who inhabited it. He chalked off the emptiness to Arthur being a recent occupant, but the lack of a deeply personal touch somewhat jarred him.

As for Arthur, Lucius was fully expecting him to be waiting for him, alert and ready, or busy doing his work like when he ran into him at the coffee shop, but when he stepped into the office, Arthur is sitting on his chair behind his desk, one hand tucked under his chin, looking at something on his phone. He tried to read his expression, but it was hard, though whatever he was reading, it certainly gave him some food for thought, since he looked quite serious and engrossed. 

Well, enough that he didn’t quite notice his arrival, Lucius thought, and, for a brief moment, he felt quite unsure of what to do.

“Are you busy looking at your Twitter feed, or is that like an ebook on some niche academic subject?” He quipped, shrugging off the uncertainty, felt stupid for feeling like that in the first place since this was, well, this was just Arthur. They had a strange relationship for sure, but Lucius was quite certain that he had his TA’s character figured out. “Sorry I’m late. Can I sit now, or are you going to scold me first?”

That got Arthur’s attention, and he quickly looked up from his phone, looking just the slightest bit guilty, like he was caught red-handed, and Lucius tried to hold back a smile. 

“It’s nothing, and I had to do something to pass the time, since you’re late,” Arthur scowled, checking something before he put his phone aside. “_Eighteen_ minutes late. You do realise that it means I have to cut your session short since there will be others after you, don’t you?”

“Can’t be helped that I had to get in a pretty long line for this,” Lucius replied with a characteristic light shrug, placing his trump card on the desk in front of Arthur. “For you, prof. Maybe you’ll feel less cranky after you drink this.”

“Is this— oh…“ Arthur trailed off, looking at the cup of coffee that Lucius had placed in front of him, uncertainly, before shifting his gaze back to him. Clearly, he wasn’t quite sure what to say. “Close the door, sit down, and we can start.”

“Sure,” Lucius did as he was asked, but stole a glance at the other man before he closed the door. Arthur is looking at the cup of coffee warily, like he fully expected something troublesome to jump out of it, but he did inch closer, before he took it and opened the lid, cautiously. “It’s not poison or anything deadly, I assure you. Cappuccino with two shots of espresso and vanilla syrup, two packets of sugar, it’s how you liked it, right?” He can’t help but voiced, seeing Arthur’s frankly quite comical suspicion, seated himself on the empty chair opposite him casually afterwards. “I just thought that a little peace offering wouldn’t hurt. And you’re welcome, by the way.”

“How did you…” Arthur muttered, looking somewhat rattled, and shook his head. “Nevermind that. It pays to be careful, you know, since Professor Archaman told me that some students would love the chance to play a prank on a new faculty member. And with my pink-haired colleague who loves to put what she dubbed as ‘love potion’ in every male staff’s drink around, I think a little caution is necessary. But,” he paused, evidently having a sudden difficulty to continue. “Thank you.”

It was obvious that Arthur felt more than a little awkward thanking him. Lucius tried to suppress an amused smile, and failed.

“I’ve had my means. And, yeah, I’ve been in Medb’s class. She’s certainly…_interesting_,” Lucius leaned back on his seat, lazily. “You don’t really want to get on her bad side, but as far as I’m concerned, you’re safe, prof. She’s only ever truly interested in one guy, and unless you have dyed blue hair, Irish, and your name is Cu Chulainn, I think you’re pretty much safe from her.”

“Oh. I see,” Arthur replied, flatly, clearly unsure, again, what to say. He cleared his throat and reached for a textbook that he’d clearly prepared for him with his free hand. “Well, we’ve wasted enough time. Let’s start.”

He wasn’t very keen on studying, not at all, as a matter of fact, but he had no other choice now but to pay attention and be present, and, he had to admit, he was curious. Not very much on the subject matter itself but more on Arthur—although he realised that he hasn’t been a very good student since day one, but Lucius had been in enough tutoring sessions to notice that some of the TAs and lecturers are different in private sessions than they are in class. Some are more approachable, as the other students would put it, though some are certainly…somewhat more eccentric. 

Listening to Arthur, he supposed the man could be put in the former category, though not by much. His explanations are still succinct and to-the-point, and his general demeanour is still aloof, icy, but there are moments when Lucius fancied that he saw a more affable man underneath, and it was certainly easier to talk to him in this setting than in a room full of other people. 

Time did fly, and he realised that they reached the end of the session, when Arthur stopped and checked his phone for the time.

“We finished?” Lucius asked, tilted his head slightly. “You’re going to tutor some other poor sod now?”

“…yes,” Arthur answered, after taking a sip of his coffee. “That will be all for today, unless you have something else you wanted to ask.”

“Huh. No, not really, and it wasn’t as bad as I thought,” he remarked, stretching for a bit. 

“That’s because you bothered to try,” Arthur closed the book, folded his hands on the desk. “You didn’t in class, did you? I have to admit, I saw your GPA report card for the last semester, Lucius. You’re not a bad student, per se. Yet you flunked some classes anyway. I wonder why.”

This certainly caught him off-guard, and Lucius stared at him for a full moment, trying to decide if he should let this get under his skin, or if he should laugh it off. Again, no one has ever done this to him before, paid this much attention, and it gave him a particular sort of strange itch, that he was certain he would not be able to quite scratch.

“I don’t think that Professor Archaman would even care about me that much, though he is really laid-back about a lot of things,” Lucius finally said, accompanied by a smirk that he couldn’t quite suppress when he realised something. “I could turn the question around: why do you care so much? Is there a particular reason behind that, prof, or are you just actually one of those overly-idealistic types?” 

“I’m just curious,” Arthur immediately responded, coolly, almost cold in that respect, and Lucius felt his smirk faltering. If he did manage to get under his skin, Arthur didn’t let it show. “And I suppose I’m just, quote unquote, ‘one of those overly-idealistic types’. It kind of comes with the territory, you see.”

“Then save your pep talk for someone else, I don’t want it,” he told him, rising from his seat. “I don’t need you, too, lecturing me from on top of your high horse. This has been quite nice, prof, I have to admit, but we’re done here, aren’t we? I’m leaving.”

“Yes. I’ll see you in class tomorrow,” Arthur said, still in the same impersonal, nonchalant tone, though Lucius didn’t stick around to see his expression—he already got one hand on the door handle—but he thought that he heard just the tiniest hint of disappointment in Arthur’s voice. “Oh, but I think I should make it clear that I did not want you to fail. On the contrary, I wanted to make you try. I think you’re more than capable of doing that.”

He did not know how to respond to that, and he had to admit that this did get under his skin, a little, so he merely opened the door and leave.

The thought of skipping the class the next day did cross his mind, but Lucius pushed it aside. He’s not going to let Arthur win, out of pure spite than anything else, and it did bother him, a little, that he did get distracted by the mere proximity and presence of Arthur, back in his office.

* * *

Days passed again after that, and then weeks—nothing much happened and not much changed in Ethics class, with Arthur still keeping close watch on him like a particularly ill-tempered hawk, and he supposed the rest of the class must have noticed by now. It doesn’t much bother Lucius, since he was used to being treated like trouble—he did love getting on people’s nerves for the sheer pleasure of it anyway—but it was painfully clear that Arthur is trying to keep their strained interactions to a minimum once class had ended, which is just a little troublesome, since he did need to visit and talk to him every now and then.

He still didn’t care much about passing, for that matter, but he did not want to let Arthur win, specifically, he wanted him to know that he tried not because of him, but because he wanted to. It was infinitely petty of him, he supposed, but Lucius doesn’t really care—he really liked to win, and two can definitely play the game.

It was the weekend, a Saturday, and he was in campus because he had just finished a meeting with the debate club. He was going to lunch, strolling through the Humanities and Social Sciences faculty corridors languidly, not in any particular hurry, and he was indeed busy reading the message his Twitter friend sent him before the meeting started.

Then he turned into a corner, lift his gaze, and there was his infuriating Ethics TA, on his knees, trying to gather all the papers and a couple of books that he’d dropped back into the safety of his arms.

He always thought that none of them would ever get to see Arthur lose his cool, or at least, they would never get the chance to see him do something ridiculous though completely mundane, like dropping the stack of papers and books he was holding (though there was quite a lot of them for just one person to be carrying them around), and Lucius was quite certain that the more gullible of them would probably even unconsciously believed that the man couldn’t even trip, since he always seemed so composed and graceful.

But he didn’t stand around and feel baffled for long, he just immediately approached the scene and helped him gather the papers. Not because he cared about Arthur in particular or because he was a helpful person, he justified, but because the thought of Arthur’s reaction alone is as endlessly amusing as it is comical. Since Arthur tried his best to make him suffer in class, Lucius thought that it was just fair for him to make him suffer outside of that.

“You really don’t…have to help me with this,” Arthur said, shortly after Lucius started helping him, evidently managed to got over his initial shock of running into him. “I can handle this.”

“I think you’re just trying to say that you don’t need _my_ help,” Lucius picked up one of the papers, absently examined it for a short moment, before picking up another. “There’s quite a lot of these, you know. I don’t think it’s healthy for you to walk around carrying these much stuff. Don’t you have anyone you can talk into bringing all of these for you?” He stacked up the stray couple of books, pausing to look at Arthur. “How did this happen? What are you doing working on a Saturday, anyway?”

“It’s, um…” Arthur _did_ blush, a little, clearly out of embarrassment, and Lucius had to hold back a smile—it’s not every day he could see his famously reserved TA blush, and he thinks it’s kind of cute. “Well, maybe I did stumble a little. It’s not a big deal. And I’m here today because the professor is going to a seminar out of town for a couple of days. So I have to pick up some of his work.”

“Oh, you’re holding down the fort for him. That makes sense,” he picked up three of the papers and put them on the already existing stack. Then he looked at Arthur, again, before he stood up abruptly. “Right, then. Come on,” Lucius took the liberty to pull him to his feet and led him to the nearest seat. “Just sit and wait here, prof. I’ll tidy up the things for you.”

“No, but—“ Arthur tried to protest, but he gently pushed him down to the bench. He looked uncertain when Lucius left him there to gather and tidy up the rest of the papers and books. When he’s done, he separated them into two piles, and put one of them beside Arthur, the other—the one with the books—in his lap.

“There, it’s done,” Lucius said after he put the books in Arthur’s lap, satisfied. “No need to get stressed out over it. I did wonder, though, if everything’s alright,” he added, looking closely at the other man. He did not want to care, he thought, but he did felt a sort of concern creeping in anyway like an unwanted visitor. “Are you okay, prof? Do you need help carrying these back to your office? And, more importantly,” he paused, for dramatic effect, and also to try and gauge Arthur’s reaction, “you’re going to lunch after this, aren’t you? Or do you need me to bring you lunch too?”

There was a long, long pause, in which Lucius was certain that he’d somehow broken Arthur’s brain, since Arthur just stared at him for the longest while, as if he’d just said something completely nonsensical and ridiculous, or that he’d just accidentally grown another head.

“Maybe you could come lunch with me,” Lucius added, playfully, seeing the chance to tease him and immediately jumped at it.

“No, absolutely not,” Arthur retorted, calmly but adamantly. He did avoid Lucius’ gaze for a bit, though, and he was certain that Arthur blushed again. “And no, I don’t need your help either. I’m fine. Perfectly so. Thank you for,” he paused, and it was clear that he was having a hard time spitting the words out, which made Lucius feel all the more amused, “_helping_ me, and for the…concern, I suppose, but I’m fine, I can take care of myself.”

As if to prove his point, he gathered the books Lucius had put in his lap into his arms, and stood up. He put them down first beside the papers, before he stacked the papers on top of them, and then lifted them up. Lucius watched this with barely suppressed amusement.

“You’re a seriously stubborn one. And I’m pretty sure you haven’t been sleeping good if at all for the past couple of days, maybe even more,” Lucius remarked, lazily, noticing that Arthur’s shoulders did stiffen a bit at what he said. “Maybe that’s why you’re so cranky to me in class. You should really lay off work for a bit. Why don’t you come party with me, prof? I’ll make sure you’ll have fun. You still remember how to party, don’t you?”

“No, thanks, and I think I have made it clear enough that I’m not interested,” Arthur said, after a fair amount of pause. “My sleep schedule isn’t your business either, Lucius, my work and thesis isn’t going to do itself. I’m sure you won’t be able to understand since it seems like all you need to do is coast through life and intimidate anyone who stood in your way. Thank you for helping me out, but you do need to mind your own business,” he continued, calmly, green eyes aloof, as if nothing had happened at all. “Well, I should be going now. Have a good day.”

Lucius hated to admit that, at that moment, with the midday light framing him like a halo, that Arthur looked beautiful, his elegant silhouette something straight out of the silver screen, or a great artist’s ideal dream. He felt like Arthur was waiting for a response, or perhaps even felt vaguely guilty for the thinly-veiled insult, but he was mostly too busy trying to commit the moment to memory, and when he could think of a suitable reply, Arthur had already turned and walked away briskly, his long, graceful strides echoing lightly in the empty hallway.

It was a dream, he’d like to think, and he’s likely to forget it, sooner or later.

* * *

Midterms come along, as the days slowly growing colder and the nights longer, the sky turning grey more often than not, the blue, heavenly dome a distant memory. It was a season of talking quietly in the hallways and hot coffee in the mornings, no longer the season of loud conversations and raucous parties, but he was never shy of expressing himself, and the particular loneliness that always comes creeping in whenever he had to spent a night alone lingers, no matter the season.

Things did get a little better with Arthur, after their hallway encounter, and, for what it’s worth, he seemed to have mellowed down and treated him with the same aloof attitude that he gave everyone else, for the most part, and Lucius could breathe a little easy, but part of him _did_ miss their old dynamic. Perhaps Arthur did feel like he owed him, after all, since he did help him out, or perhaps he felt threatened since Lucius had managed to catch a glimpse of his moment of weakness—he could only speculate, but he doesn’t think of it much.

He was very much looking forward to the final day of the tests, not only because of the obvious, but also because his anonymous friend had finally agreed for a meeting. 

That Friday evening, after the final test had been done and over with, he sat down in a corner of a bar downtown—his friend had picked the place, it was a place he knows though not often frequented, and it was pretty far from campus, in a hip part of town.

The evening had been quite gusty and chilly, and, though he drove there, Lucius was grateful to slip in to the warmth of the place, soaking in the murmur of background conversations and the faint music, filling in the gaps between people’s chatter. It was packed but not overly so, just enough for everyone to be busy with their own business, and he managed to secure a rather secluded spot in the corner.

He ordered a drink while he waited, wondering, for a moment, what his friend would be like, in flesh, but he doesn’t dwell too long on the thought and took out his phone instead.

Lucius doesn’t think he waited for long, and he looked up from his phone just at the right moment to see a familiar face arrive on his table, and slid in to the empty spot beside him on the sofa, gracefully. He might have caused a few heads to turn, and, Lucius thought that he wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case—after all, it was hard not to notice Arthur, and he did radiate a certain kind of captivating presence. 

It felt more jarring than the time he ran into him in the coffee shop, though nothing about Arthur was particularly out of place, dressed in a stylish dark blue coat in a slightly more casual look than he’d seen him in campus, even if, somehow, he still looked a tad bit overdressed for an evening out at the bar. The surprise must have been evident on his face, since he thought that he saw the tiniest ghost of a smirk on Arthur’s lips, though he regarded Lucius with his characteristic impenetrable cool. 

“What are you- what are you doing here?” He blurted out, after a fair amount of silence, pushing aside the shock he felt at seeing the one person he least expected to see. 

“I’m meeting someone,” Arthur simply answered, leaning back almost casually. It’s a little odd, too, to see him acting so casual, but it was definitely interesting. “You shouldn’t be so surprised. I have a personal life, you know.”

His response did fill in the blanks of the questions currently running through Lucius’ head, and it’s not hard to put two and two together, but he had to make certain of it, not to mention that it was clear that Arthur wanted to play a game.

“I wonder what this person is like,” he remarked, lazily, taking a sip of his drink. “Could it be a beautiful woman? I would think that it might be your type. Or are you not into that?”

“I do, but not this time,” Arthur replied in the same tone, and Lucius thought that he was trying hard to suppress a small, teasing smile. “I’m meeting a man.”

“Oh? And what’s this lucky man like, prof?” He leaned closer, slightly, smiling interestedly. 

“I shouldn’t say, but I suppose I could give you a hint or two,” Arthur mirrored his gesture, leaning closer conspiratorially, though the tiny smile that he gave him was more mischievous in nature. “He has the most peculiar eye colour, as the poets would say. Most would say it’s blue, but I’d say it’s a deep purplish colour, like the twilight sky. He preferred dogs to cats because they’re loyal, and I think his favourite colour is crimson, much like his hair in the sunlight. He’s not very bright most of the time, and a lot of people would say he’s obnoxious, but he has become quite a dear friend of mine, even if he doesn’t know that yet.”

This was extremely surprising coming from Arthur, and, had it come from anyone else, Lucius would peg it as either a lie or an attempt to cozy up to him, but there was undoubtedly candor in it, with a touch of distant, wry fondness, although it’s a bit hard to tell from Arthur’s tone and expression alone. But that did confirm his suspicion.

“I think I know who you mean, though I’m not sure if you’re trying to praise or insult me, prof, and I’m not sure about the friend bit,” he laughed, downing his drink before he slid closer to Arthur, smoothly wrapping an arm around his waist, pulling him closer. “But we can find out tonight, and perhaps even do other things,” he told him, pausing for a moment to let the suggestion sink in, giving him a sly smile. 

“…just how many drinks did you already have?” Arthur eyed him, warily, but perhaps with a flicker of concern, and it was so like the person he knew back in campus, he had to laugh again.

“Just one so far,” he shrugged. “But you should let me buy you a drink. I’m not cheap, though, so I’ll buy you dinner too. After that…” he lifted Arthur’s chin with his free hand, lightly, checking him out not-so-subtly, and liking what he sees. “We’re going back to my place. It’s not every day that I met my gorgeous TA in a local bar.”

“You really do need to put it that way,” Arthur said, sarcastically, but his expression was impassive for the most part, though Lucius thought that he saw the undertones of a blush. “We barely even started, and you were already thinking about dragging me back to your place. But I suppose a drink or two won’t hurt,” he added, somewhat grudgingly. “I can afford my own dinner, though. And you should probably not get too handsy with me until at least after dinner.”

“You still have so many rules, and I’d love to break them,” Lucius released his chin, but he kept Arthur close. “Tonight, you’re going to be mine, either way, and, since you did turn a few heads when you walked in, I want people to know that you’re coming home with me.”

“You’re annoyingly confident,” Arthur remarked, a flicker of annoyance flashed by in his eyes. “What makes you think that I wouldn’t change my mind before the night ends, Lucius?”

“Call it a hunch, but I have a feeling that you’re more attracted to me than you cared to admit,” he told him with a confident smile, resting a hand languidly on Arthur’s thigh, shifting closer to whisper on his ear. “Oh, but you’re so annoyingly sexy, prof, you have no idea. I get a feeling that you’re not going to be so uptight once we’re alone together. I can’t wait until I put my cold, sadistic TA in a compromising position for once.”

“…I forgot just how juvenile undergrad students can be,” Arthur scoffed, although he did bit his bottom lip and look away. “You’re all so rough and immature. Well, never mind that. I can show you a real good time.”

“You talk like you’re so much older than me,” Lucius can’t help but pull away slightly and laugh. “You’re like, what, two years my senior? Though I suppose you do have that mature air about you, and that’s undoubtedly part of your charm.”

“Four, actually,” Arthur pointed out, somewhat condescendingly, Lucius noticed. “I’m twenty-four, so yes, I suppose I am a little younger than your typical, quote unquote, ‘stuffy grad student types’, but I’m still older than you, you know, and that’s why I won’t let a younger man buy me dinner. Especially a spoiled rich one.”

“What do you know about me?” He tried to suppress another laugh and failed. “You’re like the MI6. You should probably consider a career change and work there instead, prof, you’d make a great spy.”

“Oh, I know enough,” Arthur’s ghost of a smile was amused, and he let out a small chuckle. It takes all of his self-control not to just pull him in for a kiss, and Lucius absently stroked his thigh instead, moving his hand just enough to let him know that he was serious about taking him home, and just at the right spot to send shivers down Arthur’s spine. “Enough to know what kind of student you are, and what kind of man. But I don’t think we should talk about that now, do we?” He turned around slightly to face him, leaned in just enough that Lucius could catch a whiff of his perfume. It reminded him of his office, in a way, all clean and refined, almost divine in its sophistication. “So, buy me a drink, Lucius, and we’ll talk. If you’re lucky, I wouldn’t change my mind, and I’ll let you take me back to your place, because who knows, you might just be my type after all.”

His proximity was overwhelming, and intoxicating in a way that he barely experienced before from the ones he’d been with. It put his brain in some sort of an odd charmed haze, and that makes it hard for him to compose a suitable reply.

“You’re certainly a demanding one, prof,” he was finally able to say, watched as an enigmatic smile graced Arthur’s lips, and pulled his hand away from his thigh, though he kept a possessive arm wrapped around his waist, still. “But I like that about you. I definitely accept your challenge, and I promise, you won’t even think about changing your mind. I mean it,” Lucius leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, lightly.

“Yes, we shall see,” Arthur told him, simply, a challenge written in his smile, and it’s one that Lucius couldn’t refuse.

* * *

The evening felt a bit like a fever dream, a little too good to be true, and part of him couldn’t believe that it’s happening, but Arthur’s warmth beside him when they sit close together in the corner of the bar was undoubtedly real. It was strange that they could get along, considering their relationship in class, but, it did felt somehow familiar, and, by the end of it, Lucius was absolutely certain that he was, indeed, the same person as the one he’s been talking to online, even if Arthur had never divulged any personal information and gave him an alias. 

He still had some questions, of course, but he chose to keep it to himself, until the right moment presented itself.

It’s pretty standard, he supposed—they talk about superficial things while they drink for a bit (ones that they had bonded over online and new ones), he made jokes and Arthur laughed, then they progressed to the nearest restaurant, and, afterwards, they drove to his place, and he gave Arthur free rein over the radio.

The elevator ride to the topmost floor of the apartment was short, a blur like the view of the city outside during the trip in his car, and he expected an offhand comment or two on the size or even the opulence of the place, but Arthur said nothing about it.

“This is a little strange. I don’t think I’ve ever took a TA home before,” Lucius lightly joked, shrugging off his coat once they were inside. “Then again, I never would have thought that the guy I’ve been messaging online turned out to be you. So you have the honour to be the first one of your kind here, prof. And you seem, also, to be the first who had nothing to say about this place.”

“And what a dubious honour it is,” Arthur scoffed, quietly, giving him a sideways look. “I bet you’re going to brag to all your friends after this, that you finally managed to score with a faculty member. Or you’re just going to shout it to the world through your social media,” he shrugged, and, without bothering to take off his coat, he pattered on inside, as cautiously as when he was checking out the coffee from him back then in his office, and Lucius followed suit, trailing after Arthur. “And, well, I have nothing to say because I know you’re a spoiled rich brat, remember?” He teased, but fell silent for a bit. “I did expect you to have an entire suite all to yourself. It does feel…a little lonely, though, I suppose. You don’t spend much time here, do you?”

“Not when I’d rather be elsewhere, partying and whatever,” it was Lucius’ turn to shrug, and he steered Arthur to the sofa near the large window overlooking the city, the night sky above it like an omen, or a sheet of dark glass. “You can sit here. Do you want a drink?”

“No, I think I’ve drank enough tonight,” Arthur sat down, and his somewhat listless tone made Lucius realise that he was looking at the cityscape spread out before him, which made him instinctively follow the other man’s gaze. “You should probably not drink any more too. Why do you like partying so much?”

“Leave the teacher mode out of the door, prof,” he laughed, plopping down beside Arthur, casually draping an arm over his shoulder. “I really don’t need a chaperone. But, if you truly wanted an honest answer, it’s because of what you said. It’s lonely in this place. The only person who came here to check on me regularly is my cousin Nero.”

“What about your parents?” Arthur expressed, turning slightly to face him with some sort of concern in his eyes, but it was followed with a flash of regret. “I’m sorry. That might have been a sensitive topic, and—“

“_This_ is their brand of affection, the only way they know how,” he made a vague gesture at the lavish, expansive space they’re in, followed by another shrug. “My mother left my father some time ago, and they never had an affectionate relationship in the first place. So I suppose you’re right about me being a spoiled rich brat, especially since I don’t have any siblings. But enough about me,” Lucius paused, trying to read Arthur’s expression. He could see the flecks of gold in his eyes when he leaned closer, and it reminded him of sunlight on the trees in summer, or something holy. “We’ve spent the evening together, but I don’t think you’ve told me about yourself. So, tell me about yourself, prof.”

“I’m—“ Arthur started, but stopped himself, and shifted his gaze back to the sparkling city outside. “It’s nothing interesting. I have two older siblings, a brother and a sister. I also have a twin sister. My parents had passed away some time ago, but they left us a substantial amount of money. There’s not much to it, really.”

“No, that’s interesting,” Lucius told him, pausing because something crossed his mind. He remembered, vaguely, of their encounter in the hallway, where he helped Arthur with the papers and the books scattered on the floor, and of him afterwards, before he walked away, sunlight framing him through the windows. Something had been bugging him ever since then. “Maybe it’s another hunch, but I think you know how it feels to be alone, don’t you? You always seem to be quite lonely, and I don’t think you allow yourself to get too close to your colleagues, or even students for that matter.”

This seemed to hit the mark because Arthur fell silent, his eyes distant, and his silence tells Lucius everything he needs to know. It also made him aware, once more, of their physical closeness, this time without the prying eyes of strangers, and he, too, realised that all this time—not just tonight—he’d wanted Arthur, but thought that it was quite impossible, considering everything. 

“But, no, we don’t need to talk about that, prof, if you don’t want to,” Lucius broke the thoughtful silence, once more touching Arthur’s chin, prompting him to look at him. “And I’m curious about other things. We’re alone now, and I did told you earlier this evening that you’re going to be mine tonight, didn’t I?”

“Yes, and I suppose…” Arthur bit his bottom lip, looking slightly nervous, and it was the first time that Lucius had ever seen him like that. “I can’t really deny it any longer either. I want you.”

The admission from Arthur’s own lips felt somewhat sweet, and Lucius couldn’t help but smile, before he pulled him in, pressing his lips to Arthur’s, and he could feel Arthur kissing him in return, with only the slightest hint of reservation. It was an inquisitive kiss, perhaps a little awkward, as they test the waters to find out how the other tasted like, fumbling curiously, but the first one was followed by another, less awkward one. Lucius released Arthur’s chin so he could wrap his arms around his waist, pulling him closer, and he could feel Arthur’s grip on the front of his shirt. 

“So I guess this is how it feels like to kiss my frustratingly hot TA,” Lucius said, after he broke the kiss, smirking lightly at him. “It’s not so bad, prof, and you’d look so good in my bed. I’d like to undress you first, that should be quite a sight. And you did talk big about showing me a good time, didn’t you?”

“Well, I’d never thought I’d let my most troublesome student take me back to his place and kiss me, but here we are,” Arthur smiled, evidently amused, and released his shirt, only to climb on his lap. “I don’t talk big. I mean it. I’ll give you a better night than what you already have so far with your friends and whatnot,” he says, the cool glance that he gave him sets Lucius’ pulse racing, and Arthur put his hands on his shoulders, smiling his characteristic enigmatic smile. “But yes, I suppose I’ll let you do that. I’m all yours for the night, Lucius.”

Arthur leaned closer and pressed a kiss on his lips before Lucius could say anything, and it felt oddly sweet and wicked all at once, a prologue for something more, and he wrapped his arms around Arthur’s hips while he kissed him back, greedily. He could taste a tinge of alcohol on Arthur’s lips, and he slid his tongue into his mouth, experimentally, while he carefully move a hand up to his shoulder, trying to get his coat off him.

Arthur’s presence, combined with the whiff of his perfume that Lucius had caught wind of earlier, is truly overpowering, and he was so distracted that he lost control for a moment. The other man broke the kiss to press another one on his jaw, and slowly brought his lips to his neck, trailing tiny kisses along the way. It was not a new sensation, but it took Lucius off-guard anyway because he was simply too distracted by Arthur in general, and Arthur took the chance to reach down between his thighs, stroking his length, before Lucius caught his hand and pushed him away a little. 

“While I like the thought of you on top of me, prof, I want you under me tonight, and I want to see you squirm,” he told him, releasing Arthur’s hand so he can stroke his cheek, languidly. “Maybe it’s my turn to teach you a thing or two. Now you’d be good and take off your coat for me, wouldn’t you?”

“So that’s how you like it?” Arthur voiced, accompanied by a small, amused smile. “Normally I won’t let an irksome undergrad order me around, but, I have to admit, the thought did turn me on, a bit,” he cupped Lucius’ face and leaned down to steal a kiss from his lips. “I do have a genuine question, though. You know I’m not a professor, not yet at least, and I’m certainly not here in any academic context, so I’m not sure why you insist on calling me that.”

Arthur did furrow his brow for a bit when he said that, clearly quite serious about it, although he did remember what he’s supposed to do, and shrug his coat off—Lucius helped him with it—and it was quite an adorable, amusing sight, that Lucius couldn’t help but laugh.

“Well, if you’d prefer something else…” he toyed with the topmost button of Arthur’s shirt, smiling mischievously. “Yes. Can I bring you to my room now, Arthur?”

For some reason—perhaps it was his turn to throw Arthur off-guard, or perhaps it was the manner in which he said his name—this makes Arthur blush, a deep red colour spreading across his pale cheeks, and he seemed to lost the ability to speak for a moment.

“Y- yes, you can,” Arthur mumbled, suddenly unable to look at him, as well. “But…I have to be honest. I haven’t been involved with anyone for quite a while. That’s why, I’m not sure…”

“This can be whatever you wanted it to be,” Lucius told him with a non-committal shrug. “It can be a one-time thing, a friends with benefits thing, something that leads to something more, or, even if you want, you can still make me suffer in class this semester while I fuck you in private and make you my slave in bed,” he had to pause and laugh a bit at this, especially since he’d managed to make Arthur blush even more. “I have to admit that the last one is really hot and tempting, but it’s your choice, prof. Nobody has to know either if you say so.”

“You- you really need to…” Arthur managed to mutter, dumbfounded and evidently very much embarrassed, and Lucius stole a kiss from him this time, pressing his lips to his softly with a suppressed laugh. “I need time to think about it. Let’s just go to your room for now.”

“Well, alright,” he said with a grin. “And before you go all responsible adult talk on me, I do have some condoms around. You don’t need to worry about that.”

* * *

Lucius could barely remember the last time he felt this excited. As easily bored as he was, he had regular hookups and flings here and there, but none of them seem to incite the same amount of anticipation that he was feeling now, leading Arthur by the hand to his room. Perhaps it’s because Arthur isn’t the usual type that he went for—he’s not throwing himself at his feet or try to cozy up to him, for one (he doesn’t seem to be much impressed of what he’s seen of Lucius, as a matter of fact), and, strangely, part of him did see Arthur as someone who’s way out of his league, and not just because he was a TA, but mainly because of the aloof, self-contained air that he exudes—or perhaps it’s simply because everyone else felt routine at this point, predictable in the way that they reacted to and treated him.

And he couldn’t deny that all the tension that had transpired between them—in class and outside of it—makes things all the more interesting, especially considering the fact that they had actually, somehow, become friends of a sort without Lucius knowing.

He let Arthur stepped into his room first, releasing his hand, before he followed suit, closing the door behind him. 

It had took Lucius all of his self-control to not just push Arthur to the nearest wall along the way and take him there, but now that they’d finally reached their destination, he doesn’t wait any longer. He wrapped his arms around the other man from behind, pressing kisses on his neck, and he doesn’t wait for Arthur to react to start unbuttoning his shirt, casually.

“Did you ever picture something like this before?” Lucius remarked, languidly, toying with one of Arthur’s buttons for a bit while he let his breath tease his neck. “Because maybe I did think of just shutting you up by kissing you whenever you were being especially infuriating to me in class.”

“That’s so typical,” Arthur laughed, quietly, shaking his head. “You probably fantasise about reaching third base with your hot homeroom teacher when you’re in eleventh grade, Lucius. But, maybe you’d be surprised if I told you I did,” he helped him with the rest of his buttons, before he caught his hand, pushed it aside, and turned around to face him. “Once or twice, maybe, after our late-night chats, and it’s so frustrating because I know I’m not supposed to.”

“Is it because you think I’m immature and troublesome?” He can’t hold back a smirk at that, and he pulled Arthur in for a rough kiss, pushing aside his shirt to feel his skin. “Or is it just because you think I’m hot?”

“No, you’re just annoying,” Arthur replied, calmly, and Lucius did laugh at that, distracting him with another passionate kiss, before he easily steered him towards his bed and pushed him there, climbing on top of him. “Now I’m even more annoyed that I let you take charge tonight,” he added, and his fake annoyance is so convincing, that Lucius can’t help but scoff.

“You said you’re all mine tonight and I’m not going to let you take that back,” he leaned down to kiss Arthur’s neck again, this time leaving a visible mark there, and pins Arthur’s wrists on either side of his head. He did pull back just enough to admire Arthur, spread out underneath him, his shirt already unbuttoned, golden hair that was usually so neat a little tousled. “Don’t protest too much now. Just open your legs for me and be quiet, prof,” he told him, releasing Arthur’s left wrist to annoy him with a pat on the head, then grabbed a fistful of his hair and kissed him forcefully, which Arthur returned with the same ferocity, although a little more restrained. “This is for all the time you told me to be quiet in class.”

Arthur indeed opened his mouth to protest at that and Lucius took this as a chance to really silence him with another kiss, a long, deep one, while he busied his hand with Arthur’s belt, stopping for a moment to reach between his thighs and stroke him there. This did prompt Arthur to part his legs slightly, and he covered his mouth with his again, muffling his moans.

“Did you tell everyone you sleep with that, or are you just seriously trying to make me into your slave?” Arthur said, after Lucius broke the kiss, cheeks all flustered. He did wrap his legs around him, and try to nudge him closer that way, which Lucius considered a win.

“Oh, I see that it’s catching on. Maybe you _do_ want that,” he patted the growing bulge in Arthur’s trousers, but he did unzip it, carefully. “My cute, classy Ethics TA, secretly fantasising about something like that. Well, I can’t blame you. You’re the first to hear that, though, so don’t be jealous, Arthur.”

He annoyed him further with a winning smile, which Arthur returned with a scowl, and he laughed, pressing a gentler kiss on his lips.

“I’m going to get protection and some lube, because I’m going to fuck you nice and proper, and in the meanwhile, you should take off the rest of your clothes for me, okay?” Lucius told him after the kiss, touching his chin lightly. “Try to behave, I know you’re more than capable of doing that. There’s definitely a reward in it for you if you do,” he managed to keep a straight face while he said that, though he still couldn’t help but smile in the most infuriating way that he knows how, since Arthur probably knows what he’s referencing. The look on Arthur’s face once he realised it, though, is priceless, and Lucius laughed, satisfied that he really managed to make Arthur felt well and truly flustered, before he pulled away for real and got off the bed.

When he returned, Arthur is already waiting for him, naked like he asked him to, and he didn’t waste anymore time. He climbed back on the bed, back on top of him, felt Arthur pulled him in for a rough kiss this time around, and he felt his hand on his shirt too, fumbling with his buttons.

“You better give me my reward now,” Arthur whispered, in-between the frantic kissing and touching, and Lucius can’t help but laugh, or at least try to, because this time around it was Arthur’s turn to shut him up with a kiss. “I felt like I’ve been waiting all night long,” he added after he broke the kiss, with a small pout that was quite amusing.

“All night or ever since you had the luck to met me?” He had to tease, but he did help Arthur unbutton his own shirt, which was quite honestly a disaster, because they were both trying, frantically, to do the same thing, which made their hands collide, but at least it made them both laugh.

“Oh, just shut up,” Arthur gave him a somewhat exasperated look, although he did just laugh, and perhaps he’s trying to hold back more laughter from how he evidently tried to suppress a smile, which made Lucius wanted to laugh again, but he did stop teasing him, and no more words was exchanged between them, as he helped Arthur with his own clothes. 

They were busy with each other after that, hands and lips all over the place, frantically discovering something new about the other, and Lucius particularly enjoyed leaving tiny red marks on Arthur’s neck, chest, and inner thighs, like little breadcrumbs, or at least proof that this moment, this night happened and transpired between them. It felt a little like sharing a particularly satisfying secret, and it was cathartic in a way. He rode Arthur for a bit, rubbing his hard-on on his thigh, Arthur’s legs wrapped around him. He could feel the other man’s hard-on, too, pressing against him, and he stopped riding him for a moment to move closer, brushing a stray lock of his hair aside, kissing him full on the mouth tenderly.

Part of him automatically committed how Arthur looked at the moment to memory—much like when the sunlight framed him that one afternoon, Lucius still think that he looked beautiful, if not even more so now, since there are no more pretenses between them—with the sweat on his brow, his clear green-gold eyes wide, golden hair messy and pale skin all exposed to him in all its glory. He did hate, a little—he can’t help it—how Arthur still managed to look elegant still, like this, but the taste of him still lingers on his lips, and the smell of him on his skin reminded him that Arthur was real, and this thought made him kiss him again, impulsively.

“Don’t stop,” Arthur whispered, after the kiss, a little hoarsely, rubbing his hard-on on Lucius’ thigh. “You felt so good. I don’t think I could hold on for much longer, though, so you should really make good on your word and claim me now.”

“Your wish is my command, Arthur,” he chuckled, softly, and pressed another kiss on his lips.

Lucius prepared himself first before he helped Arthur get into position, his back to him, and he quickly started preparing the other man, too, teasing him for a bit with his fingers, but he did not linger for long, for he already felt the itch, the impatience to truly _feel_ Arthur. He does feel like he had been waiting for this moment for the entire night, as well, or perhaps even more than that—their tense interactions before tonight (although it was mostly from Arthur’s side), their conversations online now in light of the truth, and the revelation earlier at the bar made him realise just how badly he wanted Arthur, even if only for tonight, and perhaps it was him who’d wanted him ever since the first time they met. 

He spared not a moment longer, climbing on top of and, soon after, inside of him, testing the waters first for a bit, adjusting himself, before he thrusted his length into his ass confidently, pinning Arthur down to his bed with his hands. Lucius thought that he did enjoy the sensation of being inside of him, which was magnificent, and hearing Arthur’s desperate moans as he claimed him like this was an even nicer sensation. He didn’t hold back, thrusting himself into him roughly, and he felt himself tightening, but he forced himself to stop abruptly for a moment, shifting himself to kiss Arthur’s neck from behind. 

“…I didn’t tell you to stop,” Arthur managed, subtly annoyed, but Lucius pressed another kiss on his neck to tease him further, and he felt him shiver, a moan escaping from his lips. It was clear that Arthur was as close to the edge as he was, and the thought brought Lucius a certain kind of satisfaction. “Are you going to finish fucking me, or are you going to disappoint me in that area too?”

“Oh, but saying a little please would go a long way, prof,” Lucius remarked, languidly kissing his neck, and he couldn’t see the expression on Arthur’s face, but he imagined that he is probably getting all flustered again now, especially since he noticed that Arthur’s grip on the fistful of sheets that he was clutching tightened, and the thought brought an amused smile to his lips.

“Please, Lucius,” Arthur said, only a little grudgingly at first and perhaps with a subtle hint of sarcasm in it. “I want you so, so bad, and I don’t want you to stop, although you’re a pain, but I mean it when I said I want you, so pretty please, fuck me, use me, and, by god, don’t stop again. I don’t think I’m going to last much longer. Please.”

“You should tone down the sarcasm, but alright,” Lucius responded, couldn’t keep the blatant amusement off his tone and an equally amused smile from his lips. “I don’t think I’ve fucked anyone with such a glorious ass before, so consider it done.”

“Yes, you’re the best, and so on,” Arthur muttered, which Lucius could picture was accompanied by a slight rolling of the eyes, and the image delighted him, but he did as he promised him—he is close to the edge too and his length already felt uncomfortably tight—and pushed himself back inside of him.

He came first after a few more thrusts, a satisfying release. He pulled out, slick and spent, but he reached for Arthur’s hard-on, and with a few deft strokes, he, too, came, and Lucius made sure that the other man was well and truly spent, before he released his length, and pulled away. He slumped beside him on the bed right after that, lying on his back, tired but satisfied, and, for a moment, a contented silence fell between them, punctuated only by the sounds of their breathing.

He knew that they still had a little clean-up to do before they could call it a night, even as much as he’d like to skip that, and thus, it was a pleasant surprise when Arthur pulled himself up to a sitting position, shifting closer to cup his face, and pressed a gentle kiss on his lips.

“I’ll take care of things now,” Arthur said, not unkindly, his smile surprisingly sweet, his fingertips a soft flutter across his cheek that still sets Lucius’ heart racing, and it felt divine. “Just tell me where I can get what we need, and I’ll do the clean up. You don’t need to worry about anything.”

He did want to protest, but Arthur’s hand on his cheek felt warm and nice, his gaze cool, and it was reassuring in a way that made Lucius lean deeply into his touch and _yearn_—no one has ever taken care of him before, and somehow now he’d just realised that this left a certain gaping emptiness in him. Being an only child in a loveless household, he’d learnt to grow up faster than he should have, relying on nobody but himself, but Arthur’s touch made him feel like everything’s going to be alright, and he unconsciously let out a sigh.

“I don’t think you’re going to let me do it anyway even if I insist, right?” He expressed, and Arthur laughed, beautifully, the sound of it makes him want to live inside the moment forever.

“No, I won’t, so you should just tell me,” the small smile playing on Arthur’s lips is undoubtedly of the amused sort, and it was Lucius’ turn to shoot him a mock annoyed look.

“Fine. This is why I don’t actively chase after grad students,” he grumbled, but he did tell him what he asked, and Arthur gave him a pat on the cheek after that, before he pulled away, got off from bed, and padded away.

It feels a bit lonely without him again in his bed, staring up at the ceiling, and Lucius could feel a familiar sort of loneliness comes creeping in, but it really didn’t take long for Arthur to return.

Afterwards, Arthur crawled into his arms and Lucius held him close, as another companionable, comfortable silence settled between them. He did miss holding another body in his arms, he realised, and not just anyone, but someone he actually felt fond of, and their conversations earlier—at the bar and during dinner—certainly had done much to alter his opinion of Arthur, though, he supposed, he had always felt oddly fond of him, and part of him felt immense relief when he discovered that Arthur didn’t hate him as completely as he would have thought.

Still, there are certain things that he wanted to make sure of, and a few questions still lingers in the back of his mind.

“I wanted to ask you something,” Lucius started, conversationally, gently pushing the other man back just enough so he could see his face, but kept his arms loosely wrapped around him. “Just how the hell did you find my Twitter?”

A smile did find its way into his lips despite his best efforts to retain the serious expression that he puts on before he dropped the question, but Arthur—whom he felt had tensed a bit when he started the conversation—did look surprised, and he really wanted to laugh, but managed to hold back.

“Oh…that. It might be that I’ve had a little bird or two who told me,” Arthur shrugged, clearly trying to regain his cool. “Your cousin’s pretty famous, you know, so it’s not impossible that both of you popped up in my feed, and I did have a few friends around.”

“You did Google me, didn’t you?” He asked, with a wicked, teasing smile, unable to hold back any longer. “Just admit it. And then you decided to do the most petty, un-professor thing to do, and made a fake account just to troll me. Is it really in your job description to troll unsuspecting, innocent students, Arthur?”

“I did _not_,” Arthur argued, hotly, but from the furious way he was blushing, it was obvious that he felt extremely embarrassed. “You’re making things up. I did not Google you, did not troll you, and anyway, you’re _not_ innocent. I don’t think you’ve ever had that particular quality.”

“And here I thought you really do enjoy my company,” he quipped, trying to give him a mock scowl, but failed, and laughed instead. “You did responded to my tweet, you know, and you made me trust you under false pretenses. But I suppose it could be worse. I suppose you could have catfished me or something.”

“I do,” Arthur countered, indignantly, and it would have looked convincing had it not been for the fact that he was evidently still very much flustered. “Enjoy your company, I mean, not catfishing you. I made that account and responded very much on a whim, and I certainly don’t expect it to go this far. I nearly rejected your offer to meet up tonight, but I’d figured that this ridiculous charade shouldn’t go on any longer.”

“Ah, so that’s the thinking process behind Mysterious Anon X’s decision to reveal himself,” Lucius commented, loving the way that it made Arthur scowl, and he gave him a pat on the head, which only serves to deepen both Arthur’s blush and his scowl. “I’m glad that you chose to meet me. And I’m certainly glad that you finally admitted that you enjoyed my company, because I certainly had a great time tonight, and I’m not just talking about the sex.”

“…I guess I should apologise,” Arthur grudgingly said, after a small amount of pause. “I shouldn’t have pried into your private life, and pretended to be your friend online without you knowing who I am. I’m sorry.”

“But is it all an act?” Lucius inquired, seriously, looking at him closely.

“No, it’s not,” Arthur admitted, shifting slightly. “I mean everything I said to you, I never lied to you on anything else other than my name, though I am forced to steer the conversation away or say something completely off-topic whenever you started talking about our meetings in real life and whatnot, and I actually started looking forward to your messages, though I’m not sure how I should act around you, in real life,” he stopped for a moment, averting his gaze. “You may be trouble and an idiot, but I like you. I think I wanted to try going out with you. I don’t have time for anything serious right now, mind you, but perhaps after graduation, if it all works out, it could be something serious.”

This was definitely a lot to process, and Lucius thought he must have looked surprised, but Arthur is looking at him expectantly, and he pulled him closer for a quick kiss on the lips before he gave him his response.

“I’m glad that I didn’t talk shit about you in that case, but yes, I like you too, despite all the name-calling, and I forgive you, prof, mostly because you’re really cute,” he told him, tousling Arthur’s blond hair, letting out an amused laugh when it made him scowl, again. “And I’d definitely like that. Let me know when you’re free the next time around so I can arrange something nice for you. Don’t forget to leave me your personal number too before you leave tomorrow, or I’ll be forced to send you inappropriate messages on your work email.”

“You _did_ try and talk shit about me,” Arthur pointed out, and, although he looked completely serious when he said that, Lucius did spot the ghost of a thin, triumphant smile haunting the corners of his lips. “The one time that you complained to me about how I gave you a bad mark and pointed commentary on your essay in week six. That really rubs you off the wrong way, isn’t it?” His slight smile turned into a smirk, and it was Lucius’ turn to frown. “And if you send me inappropriate messages on my work email, I’m just going to block you forever, ignore you, and you would never get my number.”

“I take back my statement about you being cute,” Lucius said, eyeing him. “No, I still maintain that you’re really cute, Arthur, but you’re _cold_. You did write, and I quote, ‘if I have to read one more grammatically incorrect sentence and the words: _as per the last paragraph_, I’m going to expel you from class next week by force’. That’s just cold, you know?” He complained, but mostly jokingly, since it was funny, in retrospect, considering everything that transpired between them this night. “Nero laughed at me when I showed her that. You’re cute, but you’re going to be the end of me, because you’re going to maul me, like a lion.”

“Yes, well, your essay-writing is as atrocious as your attitude in class, I can’t help that,” Arthur smiled, and he did laugh for a bit, before he moved closer and kissed him, once, on the lips, tenderly, “don’t be mad at me, Lucius, I’ll make it up to you by letting you decide where we’re going on our first date the next time around,” he pressed another kiss on his cheek, trying to suppress a laugh. “Just make sure it’s not some place too loud. I’m quite busy next week, and I have to leave early tomorrow morning, but I’ll be sure to pencil in that date and save a spot for you in my schedule.”

“I guess I _could_ forgive you,” he left a long, lingering kiss on Arthur’s lips before he continued, and he would have continued on kissing him, had it not been for the fact that they had to separate for air. “Leave me your number tomorrow morning, and I’ll let you know. Why do you have to leave so early though? Didn’t I tell you once that you should lay off work for a bit? Don’t you have a hobby or something?”

“Do you really think I’m a workaholic?” Arthur asked, arching an eyebrow curiously. “I do in fact have a hobby, you know. I have to leave early tomorrow because I have to go to the gym. And then I’m going to see my twin since we’re going horseback riding. I don’t work all the time, you see.”

“Ah, my cute, grammar-obsessed, coffee-addicted TA is actually pretty athletic. I see,” Lucius teased, tangling a hand casually in Arthur’s hair, and started stroking it. “You’re still a huge nerd, but somehow, I’m not surprised that you enjoyed something like that, barring the fact that you have nice legs and an amazing ass.”

“…Will you ever stop teasing me?” Arthur sighed, after a certain amount of embarrassed pause, his cheeks red, and Lucius couldn’t stop himself from laughing at that. “I don’t recall giving you permission for that. Have you no self-awareness whatsoever that you are, as a matter of fact, annoying, Lucius?”

“No, not at all, and I don’t care,” he told him, confidently, and pulled him closer. “I’ll drop you off tomorrow, no buts. I know you pride yourself on being independent and mature, but I have to digress, since I did end up buying you dinner anyway, and tomorrow, you’ll have to let me chaperone you instead of the other way around.”

“Fine,” Arthur says, a bit muffled, with what sounded like a huff. “Now will you let me live? Stop making fun of me and go to sleep.”

That did make Lucius laugh, again, but he did stop, and he started stroking Arthur’s hair again, as a familiar sort of drowsiness started creeping in. 

When sleep claimed him, he almost nearly resisted it, not wanting this night to end, but at the same time, he was definitely looking forward to tomorrow, too, and their date after that. 

He must have finally fallen asleep thinking of Arthur’s smile, and the warmth from his body, pressed against him. Perhaps he did feel him shift in his arms, for a bit, and felt a soft touch on his lips after that, like the faintest glimpse of heaven. 

Sleep came not long after that, with the promise of tomorrow folded under its wings.

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to thank everyone for the Emmy that is this particular ship hell, and honestly, feel free to scream with me in the comments or whatever. Thanks for reading! <3


End file.
